System and method for combusting volatile vapors

ABSTRACT

A system for combusting volatile vapors includes a carburetor having intake valves for receiving base fuel from a fuel source, ambient combustion air, and volatile vapors from a vapor source. A plurality of sensors measure and generate sensor data based on a respective plurality of physical properties associated with the carburetor and associate combustion engine operation. One or more programmable controllers receive the sensor data and control the intake valves to regulate respective ratios of the fuel, air, volatile vapors drawn through the carburetor based on the received sensor data. To increase the burn of volatile vapors, an engine loading system automatically operated by the controller(s) applies an automatically adjustable braking load on the engine. The load level applied is based on the sensor data and commensurate with maintaining stable engine running conditions. The loading system decreases time necessary to remediate a site.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/613,729 filed Jun. 5, 2017, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S.application Ser. No. 15/385,084 filed Dec. 20, 2016 (now U.S. Pat. No.9,777,675) and further claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 62/436,813 filed Dec. 20, 2016. U.S. applicationSer. No. 15/385,084 is further a continuation of U.S. application Ser.No. 14/275,579 filed May 12, 2014 (now U.S. Pat. No. 9,523,330), whichclaims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.61/822,151, filed May 10, 2013. The disclosures of all of the foregoingapplications are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the present invention relates to systems and processes forcombusting volatile vapors that are remediated or displaced from astorage tank using a combustion engine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Volatile vapors, particularly in the form of hydrocarbons, may bereleased during soil remediation or by being displaced from a storagetank when the storage tank is otherwise filled with a liquid. One optionfor eliminating the recovered or displaced hydrocarbon vapors isincorporate them into a fuel or air stream for intake into an internalcombustion engine, thereby incorporating the volatile vapors into thefuel/air combustion process. Such an internal combustion engine isdisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,424,045, the disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. While burning volatilein an internal combustion engine can be an effective way of processingthe volatile vapors so that they are not released into the atmospheredirectly, and control systems have been developed for use with suchengines to help them run efficiently, existing control systems generallypresent only rudimentary information to the operator in the form of veryselective raw data about operation of the internal combustion engine.Existing control systems also generally provide only rudimentaryscheduling and information about maintenance of the internal combustionengine. Advancements in such control systems are therefore desirable,especially where data concerning operation and maintenance are so vitalto the uptime and efficient operation of the overall system.Furthermore, it is desirable to maximize the quantity of volatile vaporsthat can be burned to reduce reliance on a base fuel source necessary tomaintain stable engine operation and to shorten the time required toremediate a site.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed toward a system and method forcombusting volatile vapors using a combustion engine, including aprogrammable controller for monitoring and controlling the combustionprocess.

In a first separate aspect of the present invention, a system forcombusting volatile vapors includes a carburetor having a first intakevalve for receiving fuel from a fuel source, a second intake valve forreceiving external air from an external air intake, and a third intakevalve for receiving volatile vapors from a vapor source, the carburetorconfigured to discharge a combustion mixture; a combustion engineoperatively coupled to the carburetor to receive the combustion mixtureinto a combustion chamber; a plurality of sensors configured to generatesensor data based on a respective plurality of physical properties,wherein the plurality of sensors includes a first valve sensoroperatively coupled to the first intake valve, a second valve sensoroperatively coupled to the second intake valve, and a third valve sensoroperatively coupled to the third intake valve, each of the valve sensorsbeing configured to sense a valve position as one of the physicalproperties; a programmable controller configured to receive the sensordata as input from each of the plurality of sensors and to control theintake valves to regulate respective ratios of the fuel, the externalair, and the volatile vapors taken in through the carburetor in responseto the received sensor data; and a display operatively coupled to theprogrammable controller, wherein the programmable controller isconfigured to display at least a real-time portion of the sensor data onthe display as the sensor data is received, the real-time portion of thesensor data including each of the valve positions.

In a second separate aspect of the present invention, a system forcombusting volatile vapors includes: a carburetor having a plurality ofintake valves for receiving fuel from a fuel source, external air froman external air intake, and volatile vapors from a vapor source, thecarburetor configured to discharge a combustion mixture into acombustion chamber of a combustion engine; a plurality of sensorsconfigured to generate sensor data based on a respective plurality ofphysical properties, wherein the plurality of sensors includes aplurality of valve sensors, each valve sensor operatively coupled to oneof the intake valves and configured to sense a valve position as one ofthe physical properties; a programmable controller configured to receivethe sensor data as input from each of the plurality of sensors and tocontrol the intake valves to regulate respective ratios of the fuel, theexternal air, and the volatile vapors taken in through the carburetorand into the combustion engine in response to the received sensor data;and a display operatively coupled to the programmable controller,wherein the programmable controller is configured to display at least areal-time portion of the sensor data on the display as the sensor datais received.

In a third separate aspect of the present invention, a method forcombusting volatile vapors includes: directing the volatile vapors froma vapor source into a combustion engine, wherein a carburetor,comprising a plurality of intake valves for receiving fuel from a fuelsource, external air from an external air intake, and the volatilevapors, discharges a combustion mixture into a combustion chamber of thecombustion engine; sensing a plurality of physical properties using aplurality of sensors configured to generate sensor data, wherein theplurality of sensors includes a plurality of valve sensors, each valvesensor operatively coupled to one of the intake valves to sense a valveposition as one of the physical properties; monitoring the sensor datausing a programmable controller; controlling the one or moreelectronically controlled valves with the programmable controller toregulate respective ratios of the fuel, the external air, and thevolatile vapors drawn through the carburetor and into the combustionengine in response to the monitored sensor data; and displaying at leasta real-time portion of the sensor data on the display as the sensor datais received, the real-time portion of the sensor data including each ofthe valve positions.

According to a different aspect of the present invention, an engineloading system automatically controlled by a programmable controller isprovided which reduces consumption of a base fuel, increases combustionof volatile vapors in a manner which accounts for fluctuatingavailability levels of volatile vapor over time from the source, anddecreases the time necessary to remediate the source of the volatilevapors.

In one aspect, a system for combusting volatile vapors includes aninternal combustion engine; a carburetor operably coupled to the engine,the carburetor having a first intake valve receiving base fuel from aprimary fuel source, a second intake valve receiving external air froman external air source, and a third intake valve receiving volatilevapors from a vapor source, the carburetor configured to combine thebase fuel, external air, and volatile vapors fuel to form a combustionmixture and discharge the mixture to the engine; an engine loadingsystem operably coupled to the engine and comprising a braking device,the braking device configured to apply an adjustable braking load on theengine; and a programmable controller operably coupled to the brakingdevice and pre-programmed with a plurality of engine braking loadlevels, the controller configured to: receive real-time engine operatingdata measured during operation of the engine by a plurality of sensorscommunicably coupled to the controller; compare the real-time engineoperating data against pre-programmed baseline engine operatingparameters; and apply a first braking load level on the engine with thebraking device based on comparison of the engine operating data to thebaseline engine operating parameters for a period of dwell timepre-programmed into the controller.

In another aspect, a system for combusting volatile vapors includes: aninternal combustion engine; a carburetor operably coupled to the engine,the carburetor having a first intake valve receiving base fuel from aprimary fuel source, a second intake valve receiving external air froman external air source, and a third intake valve receiving volatilevapors from a vapor source, the carburetor configured to combine thebase fuel, external air, and volatile vapors fuel to form a combustionmixture and discharge the mixture to the engine; an engine loadingsystem operably coupled to the engine and comprising a braking device,the braking device configured to apply an adjustable braking load on theengine; a plurality of sensors each configured to sense a respectiveengine operational parameter in real time during operation of theengine, each sensor generating respective real-time engine operatingdata; and a programmable controller comprising non-transient machinereadable media including a pre-programmed plurality of braking loadlevels and baseline engine operating parameters, each baseline engineoperating parameter being associated with a respective sensor; theprogrammable controller configured to: receive the real-time engineoperating data from each of the plurality of sensors; compare thereal-time engine operating data for each sensor against its baselineengine operating parameter; and apply a plurality of different brakingload levels with the braking device in a progressive stepped manner onthe engine, each load level being applied based on comparison of thereal-time engine operating data for each sensor against its baselineengine operating parameter; wherein each load level is maintained at aconstant braking force by the programmable controller for apre-programmed period of dwell time before switching to a nextsuccessively higher or lower load level.

A method for combusting volatile vapors is provided. The methodincludes: mixing in a carburetor base fuel from a base fuel source,external air from an external air source, and volatile vapors from avapor source defining a combustion mixture; burning the combustionmixture in an internal combustion engine having a rotating crankshaft;sensing a plurality of physical properties associated with operation ofthe engine using a plurality of sensors configured to generate sensordata comprising real-time engine operating data measured by the sensors;monitoring the sensor data using a programmable controller including aplurality of preprogrammed engine braking load levels; the programmablecontroller comparing the sensor data against baseline engine operatingparameters preprogrammed into a non-transient storage media accessibleto the programmable controller; the programmable controller applying afirst braking load level on the engine with a braking device operablycoupled to the engine crankshaft based on the comparison of the sensordata to the baseline engine operating parameters; and the programmablecontroller maintaining the first braking load level on the engine at aconstant value for a dwell time preprogrammed into the programmablecontroller.

Accordingly, an improved system and method for combusting volatilevapors are disclosed. Advantages of the improvements will be apparentfrom the drawings and the description of the preferred embodiment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description ofthe exemplary embodiments, will be better understood when read inconjunction with the appended drawings. It should be understood,however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangementsand instrumentalities shown in the following figures:

FIG. 1 is schematic diagram of a first carburetor having three valves tocontrol air and fuel intakes;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a second carburetor having two valvesto control air and fuel intakes;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a programmable controller andassociated sensors for a combustion engine;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a network incorporating a programmablecontroller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a hierarchical structure of pages fordisplay by a programmable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 6 is a screenshot showing a dashboard page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 7 is a screenshot showing an alarms and communications page fordisplay by a programmable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 8 is a screenshot showing a data trends page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 9 is a screenshot showing a maintenance page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 10 is a screenshot showing a service checklist page for display bya programmable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 11 is a screenshot showing a parts checklist page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 12 is a screenshot showing a well performance page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 13 is a screenshot showing a system technician data page fordisplay by a programmable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 14 is a screenshot showing an engine data page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 15 is a screenshot showing a carburetor data page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 16 is a screenshot showing a well data page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine;

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of the engine of FIG. 1 for combustingvolatile vapors which includes an engine loading system for imposingartificial braking loads on the engine to maximize consumption ofvolatile vapors;

FIG. 18 is perspective view of a mechanical brake shaft coupler forcoupling a load cell (engine braking device) to the engine;

FIG. 19 is a rear elevation view of torsional vibration damper formingpart of the brake-to-engine coupling assembly;

FIG. 20 is a side elevation view thereof;

FIGS. 21 and 22 show a control logic process flowchart for configuring aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine to control the engineloading system; and

FIG. 23 is a screenshot showing a load cell data page for display by aprogrammable controller for a combustion engine.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The description of illustrative embodiments according to principles ofthe present invention is intended to be read in connection with theaccompanying drawings, which are to be considered part of the entirewritten description. In the description of embodiments of the inventiondisclosed herein, any reference to direction or orientation is merelyintended for convenience of description and is not intended in any wayto limit the scope of the present invention. Relative terms such as“lower,” “upper,” “horizontal,” “vertical,” “above,” “below,” “up,”“down,” “left,” “right,” “top” and “bottom” as well as derivativesthereof (e.g., “horizontally,” “downwardly,” “upwardly,” etc.) should beconstrued to refer to the orientation as then described or as shown inthe drawing under discussion. These relative terms are for convenienceof description only and do not require that the apparatus be constructedor operated in a particular orientation unless explicitly indicated assuch. Terms such as “attached,” “affixed,” “connected,” “coupled,”“interconnected,” and similar refer to a relationship wherein structuresare secured or attached to one another either directly or indirectlythrough intervening structures, as well as both movable or rigidattachments or relationships, unless expressly described otherwise.Moreover, the features and benefits of the invention are illustrated byreference to the preferred embodiments. Accordingly, the inventionexpressly should not be limited to such preferred embodimentsillustrating some possible non-limiting combinations of features thatmay exist alone or in other combinations of features; the scope of theinvention being defined by the claims appended hereto.

Turning in detail to the drawings, FIG. 1 schematically illustrates asystem 101 for burning volatile vapors, the system 101 including aninternal combustion engine 103, the associated carburetor 105, thesources 107, 109, 111, and the intake valves 113, 115, 117 controllingthe flow from each of the sources 107, 109, 111. Much of the internalcombustion engine 103 operates in a manner well-known to those of skillin the art, wherein the internal combustion engine 103 receives acombustion mixture, which includes fuel, external air, and volatilevapors for the system 101, from the carburetor 105 and ignites thecombustion mixture within a combustion chamber 119.

The intake valves 113, 115, 117, although shown external to thecarburetor 105, may be incorporated into the carburetor 105. The firstintake valve 113 controls flow of fuel from the first source 107, whichis a fuel source, such as a fuel tank. The second intake valve 115controls flow of external air from the second source 109, which is anexternal air source. The third intake valve 117 controls flow ofvolatile vapors from the third source 111, which is a volatile vaporsource, which may be a tank for holding liquid hydrocarbons, or anothersource such as soil remediation. Each of the three intake valves 113,115, 117 may be of different design and construction from the othervalves to accommodate the type of matter being taken into the carburetor105.

The internal combustion engine 103, like most internal combustionengines, includes a fan 121, a radiator 123, both being part of acooling system, an exhaust 121, through which the products of combustionleave the internal combustion chamber 119, and a catalytic converter 123is positioned inline with the exhaust 121.

An internal combustion engine 131 with an alternative intake valveconfiguration is shown in FIG. 2. This alternative configurationincludes a carburetor 133 and two intake valves 135, 137. The firstintake valve 135 controls flow of fuel from the first source 107, whichis a fuel source. The second intake valve 137 controls both the flow ofexternal air from the second source 109, which is an external airsource, and the flow of volatile vapors from the third source 111, whichis a volatile vapor source. The second intake valve 137 combines theexternal air and the volatile vapors into a single stream that is drawninto the carburetor 133. As before, the intake valves 135, 137 are shownexternal to the carburetor 133, but may be incorporated into thecarburetor 105. Other configurations of the intake valves and thesources may also be used, such as having a single intake valve forcontrolling a combination of the fuel and the volatile vapors, amongothers.

A programmable controller 151 for controlling the combustion engine andmanaging the burning of the volatile vapors is shown in FIG. 3. Theprogrammable controller 151 includes a programmable processor 153, avolatile memory 155, and non-volatile memory 157. The non-volatilememory 157 may be a removable memory, such as a removable hard drive, aremovable SD card, and the like. Both the volatile memory 155 and thenon-volatile memory 157 are used for saving sensor data received by theprogrammable controller 151, for storing programming, and storingoperating parameters associated with operation of the internalcombustion engine 131. The programmable controller 151 is communicablycoupled to a main display 159, a geolocation module 161, and a wirelesscommunication module 163. The geolocation module 161 generates ageolocation signal, which identifies the geolocation of the internalcombustion engine (to which the programmable controller is attached),and communicates the geolocation signal to the programmable controller151. The wireless communication module 163 enables the programmablecontroller 151 to communicate wirelessly with other devices directlyand/or over a wide area network. Display 159 forms a single HumanMachine Interface (HMI) for the entire system including the normalproduction process control system and the optional engine loading systemfurther describe herein. The display 159 may be a touch sensitivedisplay for facilitating interaction with an operator. In someembodiments, the programmable controller 151 may communicate wirelesslywith the display 159. In certain embodiments, the display 159 may beomitted, as the programmable processor 153 may communicate with a remoteprogrammable unit wirelessly using the wireless communication module 163and use a display included with the remote unit for displaying thesensor data.

The programmable controller 151 is also electronically connected tocontrol mechanisms and sensors which enable the programmable controller151, and an operator, to monitor and control operation of the internalcombustion engine for burning the volatile vapors. The various sensorsare positioned in and around the system and configured to generatesensor data based on monitored physical properties associated with thesystem. The sensor data generated by each sensor is communicated to theprogrammable controller, whether in raw form or following processing ofraw sensor data by a sub-controller (such as an analog-to-digitalconverter) to generate a representation of the sensor data. The measuredphysical properties may vary, and the type of sensor employed dependsupon the type of physical property being monitored.

The programmable controller 151 is communicably coupled to three valvesub-controllers 165, 167, 169, each of which is coupled to one of thethree intake valves, respectively, for variably controlling the positionof the respective intake valve by applying a voltage within anoperational range of voltages for each respective valve sub-controller.In other embodiments, however, the functionality of separatesub-controllers may be combined into a single sub-controller 165/167/169which is configured to control the positions of each intake valve 113,115, and 117 separately from the single module. Accordingly, threediscrete sub-controllers need not be provided in every embodiment.Additionally, the programmable controller 151 is able to sense thevoltage being applied to each of the valve sub-controllers. Any one ormore of the valve sub-controllers 165, 167, 169 may be incorporated intothe programmable controller 151, or any one or all of the valvesub-controllers 165, 167, 169 may be housed and located separately fromthe programmable controller 151. The programmable controller 151 is alsocommunicably coupled to three valve sensors 171, 173, 175, each of whichis positioned near one of the three intake valves, respectively, so thatthe programmable controller 151 may sense, through the three valvesensors 171, 173, 175, the position of each of the three intake valves.The three valve sensors 171, 173, 175 may communicate an analog signalto the programmable controller 151, or alternatively, the analog signalfrom one or more of the three valve sensors 171, 173, 175 may beconverted into a digital signal by an appropriate analog-to-digitalconverter, with the resulting digital signal being communicated to theprogrammable controller 151.

The programmable controller 151 is communicably coupled to additionalsub-controllers associated with the internal combustion engine, any ofwhich may be incorporated into the programmable controller 151: a hornsub-controller 177; an engine ignition sub-controller 179; a first fuelsolenoid sub-controller 181; a second fuel solenoid sub-controller 183;a starter solenoid sub-controller 185; and an external air manifoldsub-controller 187. These sub-controllers, including the valvesub-controllers 165, 167, 169, enable the programmable controller 151 toexert control over nearly all operational aspects of the internalcombustion engine. Where desired, for a particular sub-controller, theprogrammable controller 151 may apply a variable actuating signal, andthe programmable controller 151 may be configured to sense the voltage(or current) being applied to any of the sub-controllers.

The horn sub-controller 177 enables the programmable controller 151 tohave control over a horn (not shown) associated with the internalcombustion engine, with the horn serving to provide a localized audiblealert signal. The engine ignition sub-controller 179 enables theprogrammable controller 151 to have start and stop control for theinternal combustion engine. The first fuel solenoid sub-controller 181and the second fuel solenoid sub-controller 183 enables the programmablecontroller 151 to actuate two fuel solenoids (not shown), so that theprogrammable controller 151 may shut off the flow of fuel from the fuelsource. The starter solenoid sub-controller 185 enables the programmablecontroller 151 to have actuating control over the starter (not shown)for the internal combustion engine. The combination of the engineignition sub-controller 179 and the starter solenoid sub-controller 185provide the programmable controller with the ability to control thestart-up process for the internal combustion engine. The external airmanifold sub-controller 187 enables the programmable controller 151 tovariably control the rate at which external air is drawn into thesystem, the external air being directed to the air intake valve.

The programmable controller 151 is also communicably coupled tosub-controllers associated with a vapor source, and where the vaporsource is a tank (commonly called a “knockout tank” or “KO tank”, ormore generally, the “well”) these sub-controllers include: a tank purgesub-controller 189; a tank intake valve sub-controller 191; and a tankwater drain sub-controller 193. The tank purge sub-controller 189enables the programmable controller 151 to actuate a tank purge valve(not shown). The tank intake valve sub-controller 191 enables theprogrammable controller 151 to actuate a tank intake valve (not shown).The tank water drain sub-controller 193 enables the programmablecontroller 151 to actuate a tank water drain valve (not shown). Thesesub-controllers enable the programmable controller 151 to exert controlover important operational aspects of a knockout tank. Where desired,for a particular tank sub-controller, the programmable controller 151may apply a variable actuating signal, and the programmable controller151 may be configured to sense the voltage (or current) being applied toany of the tank sub-controllers.

The programmable controller 151 is communicably coupled to and receivesdigital signal input from the following sensors: an emergency stopswitch sensor 201; an engine stop sensor 203; an engine start sensor205; a KO tank water level sensor 207; a KO tank pressure sensor 209; afirst fuel solenoid sensor 211; a second fuel solenoid sensor 213; atachometer 215; and a fuel flow meter 217. The programmable controller151 is communicably coupled to and receives analog signal input from thefollowing sensors: a water temperature sensor 221; an O₂ pre catalyticconverter sensor 223; an O₂ post catalytic converter sensor 225; an oilpressure sensor 227; an external air manifold vacuum sensor 229; a precatalytic converter temperature sensor 231; a post catalytic convertertemperature sensor 233; a system voltage sensor 235; an lower explosivelimit (LEL) sensor 237; a vapor flow meter 239; a well vacuum sensor241; an external air flow meter 245; a door switch sensor 247; and afire system sensor 249. The analog signal from any one or more of theincluded analog sensors may be converted into a digital signal by anappropriate analog-to-digital converter, with the resulting digitalsignal being communicated to the programmable controller 151.

The emergency stop switch sensor 201 enables the programmable controller151 to monitor an emergency stop switch (not shown), so that when theemergency stop switch is actuated by an operator, the programmablecontroller 151 takes all programmed actions for an emergency shut downof the internal combustion engine. The engine stop switch may be ananalog switch, which outputs a digital signal, or a digital switch thatis represented on the display. The engine stop sensor 203 enables theprogrammable controller 151 to monitor an engine stop switch (notshown), so that when the engine stop switch is actuated, theprogrammable controller 151 takes all programmed actions for an orderlyshut down of the internal combustion engine. The engine start sensor 205enables the programmable controller 151 to monitor an engine startswitch (not shown), so that when the engine start switch is actuated,the programmable controller 151 takes all programmed actions for anorderly start up of the internal combustion engine. Either or both ofthe engine stop switch and the engine start switch may be an analogswitch, which outputs a digital signal, or a digital switch which isrepresented on the display.

The KO tank water level sensor 207 enables the programmable controller151 to monitor a water level within the KO tank. The KO tank pressuresensor 209 enables the programmable controller 151 to monitor a pressurewithin the KO tank. The well vacuum sensor 241 enables the programmablecontroller 151 to monitor a vacuum state of the KO tank. The vapor flowmeter 239 enables the programmable controller 151 to monitor a flow ofvolatile vapors from the KO tank.

The first fuel solenoid sensor 211 enables the programmable controller151 to monitor the position of the first fuel solenoid, and the secondfuel solenoid sensor 213 enables the programmable controller 151 tomonitor the position of the second fuel solenoid. The fuel flow meter217 enables the programmable controller 151 to monitor a the flow offuel, such as propane, from the fuel source to the carburetor. Theprogrammable controller 151 may be programmed to convert the signalreceived from the fuel flow meter 217 into cubic feet per minute (CFM).The external air flow meter 245 enables the programmable controller 151to monitor the flow of external air from the external air source (e.g.,the external air manifold) to the carburetor. The programmablecontroller 151 may be programmed to convert the signal received from theexternal air flow meter 217 into CFM.

The tachometer 215 enables the programmable controller 151 to monitorthe rotation rate of the internal combustion engine, thereby measuringthe revolutions per minute (RPM). The oil pressure sensor 227 enablesthe programmable controller 151 to monitor an oil pressure of theinternal combustion engine. The external air manifold vacuum sensor 229enables the programmable controller 151 to monitor the vacuum pressureof the internal external air intake. The water temperature sensor 221enables the programmable controller 151 to monitor the temperature ofwater within the cooling system of the internal combustion engine. TheO₂ pre catalytic converter sensor 223 enables the programmablecontroller 151 to monitor the oxygen level in the exhaust from theinternal combustion engine prior to the exhaust passing through thecatalytic converter, and likewise, the pre catalytic convertertemperature sensor 231 enables the programmable controller 151 tomonitor the temperature of the exhaust from the internal combustionengine prior to the exhaust passing through the catalytic converter.Similarly, the O₂ post catalytic converter sensor 225 enables theprogrammable controller 151 to monitor the oxygen level in the exhaustfrom the internal combustion engine after the exhaust has passed throughthe catalytic converter, and the post catalytic converter temperaturesensor 233 enables the programmable controller 151 to monitor thetemperature of the exhaust from the internal combustion engine after theexhaust has passed through the catalytic converter. In other possibleembodiments, the post catalytic sensor may be omitted and theprogrammable controller 151 only monitors pre-catalytic O2 levels tocontrol operation of the system.

The system voltage sensor 235 enables the programmable controller 151 tomonitor the operating voltage supplied to the programmable controller151. The LEL sensor 237 enables the programmable controller 151 tomonitor the levels combustible vapors (from the KO tank, the fuelsource, or elsewhere) accumulated within the interior of an engineenclosure housing the internal combustion engine. Sufficiently highlevels of such combustible vapors will trigger the programmablecontroller 151 to initiate an appropriate shut down procedure. The doorswitch sensor 247 enables the programmable controller 151 to monitorwhether an access door for the engine enclosure is open or closed. Thefire system sensor 249 enables the programmable controller 151 tomonitor a fire suppression system included within engine enclosure.Activation of the fire suppression system will trigger the programmablecontroller 151 to initiate an appropriate shut down procedure.

The programmable controller 151 is shown as part of a system 251 in anetwork environment in FIG. 4. The network environment may include andoperate over a wide area network, which may be public network such asthe Internet 253. Alternatively, the wide area network may be a privatenetwork or any combination of public and private networks. The networksthemselves may be wired networks, wireless networks, or any combinationof wired and wireless networks. Using the network, the programmablecontroller 151 may communicate with any of a server 255, a remoteprogrammable unit 257, and a remote workstation 259. Login identifiersand passwords may be established for operators to better secure accessto the programmable controller 151 from unwanted network intrusions whenthe network used is at least partially public. The remote programmableunit 257 may be any of a smart phone, a tablet computer, a laptopcomputer, and the like. The remote workstation 259 may be a desktopcomputer or other similar device. In the system 251, only one of eachtype of device is shown for simplicity, while those of skill in the artwill recognize that any number of remote programmable units,workstations, servers, and programmable controllers may be included aspart of the overall system.

The programmable controller 151 may communicate sensor data to any ofthe server 255, the remote programmable unit 257, and the remoteworkstation 259, and the programmable controller 151 may receive controldata from any of the server 255, the remote programmable unit 257, andthe remote workstation 259. The remote programmable unit 257 and theremote workstation 259 may be programmed with the same interactiveprogramming described herein for the programmable controller 151, sothat an operator of the remote programmable unit 257 and the remoteworkstation 259 may interact with the programmable controller 151, alongwith the sensors and sub-controllers with which the programmablecontroller 151 communicates, in the same manner as if the operator wasusing a display, as shown in FIG. 3, to interact with the programmablecontroller 151. When interacting and communicating with the programmablecontroller 151, the remote programmable unit 257 and the remoteworkstation 259 receives sensor data from the programmable controller151 and may send control data to the programmable controller 151. Thecontrol data sent to the programmable controller is the same type ofsettings and parameters data that may be entered by an operator directlyon a display connected to the programmable controller, as shown in FIG.3 and discussed in greater detail below.

As another feature, the programmable controller 151 may communicate withthe server 255 to establish a database in which the sensor data may besaved for future reference and analysis. Once the database isestablished by the server 255, according to instructions provided by theprogrammable controller 151, the programmable controller 151communicates sensor data to the server 255, and the server 255 appendsthe received sensor data to the database. The database may take any formor format desired, and may be in the form of an SQL database.

A hierarchical structure of pages 261 for display by the programmablecontroller on the display is shown in FIG. 5. Navigation between thedifferent pages may be achieved by employing a touch-sensitive displayand providing active regions, identified by graphical objects, on thetouch-sensitive display for the operator to move through thehierarchical structure of pages 261. A navigation area may berepresented by a panel on the display which enable the operator totraverse up and down the hierarchy. In addition, a graphical object maybe an active region and leads to a page which enables the operator toinput parameters associated with the feature represented by thegraphical object and/or leads to a page where further information aboutthe feature represented by the graphical object.

When the operator is presented with a page on which parameters may beentered or changed, an appropriate numerical or alphabetical virtual keypad is shown on the display. When an operator wants to make a change toan adjustable parameter, an allowable range for adjusting the parameteris shown on the display. If the operator attempts to adjust theparameter out of the given range, a message indicating that the enteredparameter is out of the allowed range is shown on the display.

The main or home page 263 of the hierarchical structure of pages 261 isthe default page that is shown when the programmable controller isinitially accessed by an operator. The home page 263 shows the time,date, and total run hours for the internal combustion engine. The homepage 263 may also include additional information, such as a job number,a unit number, and a serial number for the internal combustion engine.At least part of the home page 263 shows the current operational statusby changing background colors. When the background is a first color,such as white, it signifies the system is in idle mode and all sensordata indicates that there are no issues that need to be addressed by theoperator. When the background color is a second color, such as green, itsignifies that the internal combustion engine is in production mode andthere are no issues that need to be addressed by the operator. When thebackground is a third color, such as red, it signifies that an alarm orwarning has been triggered and attention is needed by the operator. Incertain embodiments, an operator may need to enter an identifier and/ora password prior to navigating beyond the home page 263. In addition,operators may be assigned a tech level, with at least two levels beingassignable. The lower tech level, referred to as “tech level 1,” mayhave limited access to certain parts of the programmable controller, andthe higher tech level, referred to as “tech level 2,” has full access tothe programmable controller.

From the home page 263, the operator may navigate to a dashboard page265, an alarms and communications page 267, a maintenance page 269, anda data trends page 271. The data trends page 271 leads to additionaldata trends pages 273 and to a trends settings page 275. The maintenancepage 269 leads to a tech page 277, a well data page 279, and a servicechecklist page 281. The service checklist page 281 leads to a partschecklist page 283. The well data page 279 leads to a well vacuumsettings page 285, a well valve settings page 287, a catalytic convertertemperature settings page 289, and to a force idle page 291. The techpage 277 leads to a general settings page 293, an engine data page 295,a carburetor data page 297, and a well performance page 299. The generalsettings page 293 leads to an input/output status page 301 and anoverride page 303, and the engine page 295 leads to an engine settingspage 305. The carburetor page 297 leads to a carburetor settings page307, a force idle page 309, and a carburetor calibration page 311.

An exemplary dashboard page 265 is shown in FIG. 6. The dashboard page265 is a summary page which shows real time performance and status dataassociated with the overall system. In an exemplary embodiment, thedashboard page 265 shows: the amount the fuel intake valve for thecarburetor is open 315, as a percentage open; the amount the externalair intake valve for the carburetor is open 317, as a percentage open;the amount the volatile vapor intake valve for the carburetor is open319, as a percentage open; the external air manifold vacuum level 321,the system operating voltage 323, the engine oil pressure 325, theengine water temperature 327, the pre-catalytic converter exhausttemperature 329, the post-catalytic converter exhaust temperature 331,the pre-catalytic converter exhaust O₂ level 333, the post-catalyticconverter exhaust O₂ level 335, the engine RPM 337, and the current dateand time 339. When the data displayed is associated with a maximum orminimum range entered by the operator, the dashboard page 265 will showthe graphical representation of the data in a first color, such asgreen, when the particular real-time sensor data is within the setrange, and it will show the graphical representation of the data in asecond color, such as red, when the particular real-time sensor data isoutside of the set range. Other types of data may be included on thedashboard page 265 based on design choice.

An exemplary alarms and communications page 267 is shown in FIG. 7. Thealarms and communications page 267 shows a list of active faults andalarms 341 in a prominent position near the top of the page, with thealarms listed in chronological order. Alarms remain in the list untilcleared by the operator, with an active region being provided for theoperator to clear an alarm. The alarms and communications page 267 alsoenables passwords to be set for operators, and it provides the operatorwith configuration access for establishing communications with a server,including set-up and management of the database once communications withthe server are established. The alarm and communications page 267 mayalso give the operator an option to download all stored data into anon-volatile memory via a USB port that may be included with theprogrammable controller.

An exemplary data trends page 271 is shown in FIG. 8. The data trendspage 271 shows the real-time and historical sensor data for a selectnumber of the sensors in a graph format. For example, the trends datapage 271 may show the real-time sensor data along with six minutes ofhistorical data. Carburetor trend sensor data is shown in FIG. 8, andthis data includes the position of the three intake valves 343, 345,347, along with the pre- and post-catalytic converter exhaust O₂ levels349 (two lines shown on a single graph) and the pre- and post-catalyticconverter exhaust temperatures 351 (two lines shown on a single graph).Active regions are included so that the operator may switch to trendsassociated with the internal combustion engine and with the well byselecting. Sensor data that may be shown with the engine trend sensordata includes engine oil temperature, engine water temperature, externalair manifold vacuum, and pre- and post-catalytic converter exhaust O₂levels, and pre- and post-catalytic converter exhaust temperatures.Sensor data that may be shown with the well trend sensor data includesthe CFM intake from the well, the parts per million (PPM) ofhydrocarbons in the well intake, the calculated BTU's of thehydrocarbons burned by the internal combustion engine, the well vacuumpressure, and the external air manifold vacuum pressure. Other sensordata may be included in any of the trend pages. The amount of historicalsensor data displayed may be set by the user, as is the amount ofhistorical data stored by the programmable controller. Both theseparameters may be set in the trends settings page 275 by the operatorentering the desired values for each parameter.

The trends data can be valuable when performing maintenance on thesystem. For example, the operator may be able to tell from the trendsdata if the engine performance has changed gradually over time,resulting in an alarm being triggered from the sensor data associatedwith one of the sensors going beyond the maximum or minimum presetvalues, or if the sensor data has become erratic, thereby exceeding oneof the preset values and being indicative of a failing sensor. In eachinstance, the action taken by the operator to perform maintenance willbe significantly different. In the former case, the operator may need toperform an overall service of the internal combustion engine, and in thelatter case, the operator may need to do nothing more than replace thefailing sensor.

An exemplary maintenance page 269 is shown in FIG. 9. The maintenancepage 269 shows two different countdown timers 357, 359, with the firstcountdown timer 357 counting down the time until the next 100-hourgeneral service of the internal combustion engine, and the secondcountdown timer 359 counting down the time until the next 1000-hourgeneral service of the internal combustion engine. Each countdown timer357, 359 shows remaining time until the next service interval and theappropriate reset and delay options. A reset button 361, 363 and a delaybutton 365, 367 are included for each countdown timer 357, 359. Thereset buttons 361, 363 reset the respective timers, while the delaybuttons 365, 367 serve to postpone the alarm associated with eachcountdown timer 357, 359. Preferably, each countdown timer 357, 359 mayonly be postponed for a limited time before a fault is entered that canonly be cleared by performing the designated maintenance. The totaloperating time of the internal combustion engine 369 is also displayedand tracked, and a button is provided to reset the total operating time371.

The programmable controller also tracks certain events associated withmaintenance of the system. The tracked items may include: when theregular service countdown timer is reset; when the regular service faultis postponed; when the complete service countdown timer is reset; whenthe complete service fault is postponed; when the total time on the unitis reset; when the regular service countdown timer expires; and when thecomplete service countdown timer expires.

An exemplary service checklist page 281 is shown in FIG. 10. This pageenables an operator to check a service item to indicate that the servicehas been performed. When an item changes status from un-checked tochecked (i.e., not yet serviced to serviced), the programmablecontroller tracks the event when the operator leaves the servicechecklist page 281. An exemplary parts checklist page 283 is shown inFIG. 11. This page enables an operator to check a parts item to indicatethat the part has been serviced (e.g., the required maintenance on thatpart has been performed, or the part has been replaced). When an itemchanges status from un-checked to checked (i.e., not yet serviced toserviced), the programmable controller tracks the event when theoperator leaves the service checklist page 281 (not when the operatorleaves the parts checklist page 283). The parts checklist page may applyto individual parts of the internal combustion engine, or it may applyto sub-systems of the engine. The types of service items and parts itemsincluded on each of the service checklist page 281 and the partschecklist page 283 may vary based upon design choice.

An exemplary well performance page 299 is shown in FIG. 12. The wellperformance page 299 serves as a quick reference to data associated withthe well or data that is associated with the burn rate of the volatilevapors from the well. As shown, the well performance page 299 includessimple graphs showing the calculated BTUs per hour 381 generated byburning the volatile vapors from the well; the parts per million ofhydrocarbons 383 included in the volatile vapors from the well; the CFMof volatile vapors 385 from the well; the CFM of fuel from the fuelsource 387; and the external air manifold vacuum level 389. Other datamay be included as desired on the well performance page 299.

An exemplary tech data page 277 is shown in FIG. 13. The tech data page277 gives real time readings of the fuel system, engine, and wellconditions. In addition, there may be two versions of the tech data page277, with both having the same appearance, and the difference being thaton one tech page the operator is limited in the changes that can be madeto the parameters shown, and in the other tech page the operator maychange the parameters without limit. The difference is determined bytech level assigned to the operator logging into the programmablecontroller. Tech level 1 operators may be limited to changing aperformance parameter by no more than 25% of that value for theperformance parameter as set by a tech level 2 operator. Otherrestrictions may be applied to tech level 1 operators, as desired.

The tech data page 277 includes the following real-time sensor data andcolor indicators showing whether the sensor data displayed is within adesired operating range: the status of the first fuel solenoid 391 (offor on); the status of the second fuel solenoid 393 (off or on); the fuelflow rate 395; the external air manifold vacuum 397; the external airflow rate 399; the volatile vapor flow rate 401 from the well; the wellvacuum 403; the KO tank purge valve status 405; the KO tank water drainvalve status 407; the pre- and post-catalytic converter exhaust O₂levels 409, 411; the pre- and post-catalytic converter exhausttemperatures 413, 415; the engine start switch status 417; the enginestop switch status 419; the engine RPM 420; the engine oil pressure 421;the engine fan status 423; the engine water temperature 425; the LELpercentage 427 in the engine enclosure; the engine enclosure door status429; the fire suppression system status 431; the emergency engine stopstatus 433; and the system voltage 435. For certain of the sensor datadisplayed, it is also desirable to include a third color indicator tovisually show when the sensor data has passed a predetermined warninglimit, this warning limit being outside of the desired operating range.The sensors for which it may be desirable to have this third colorindicator include at least all engine exhaust sensors, the well flowrate and well vacuum sensors, all external air-related sensors, and allfuel-related sensors.

Each graphical object of the various sensor data shown on the tech datapage 277 is an active region and leads to a page which enables theoperator to input parameters associated each respective sensor. Theparameters may serve to establish a predetermined limit, which may be anupper, a lower, or both, for the associated sensor. In the event thatthe predetermined limit is reached during operation, the programmablecontroller will take a predetermined action, also identified by theoperator, which may include one or more of setting a fault alert,communicating the alert with a server, a remote unit, and/or aworkstation, sounding an audible alert with the horn, and shutting downoperation of the internal combustion engine, among other possibleactions.

An exemplary engine data page 295 is shown in FIG. 14. The engine datapage 295 shows the current engine status, and it includes the followingreal-time sensor data and color indicators showing whether the sensordata displayed is within a desired operating range: the pre- andpost-catalytic converter exhaust O₂ levels 409, 411; the pre- andpost-catalytic converter exhaust temperatures 413, 415; the enginestarter status 441; the engine RPM 420; the engine oil pressure 421; theengine fan status 423; the engine water temperature 425; and the systemvoltage 435. For certain of the sensor data displayed, it is alsodesirable to include a third color indicator to visually show when thesensor data has passed a predetermined warning limit, this warning limitbeing outside of the desired operating range. The sensors for which itmay be desirable to have this third color indicator include all engineexhaust sensors, the engine oil pressure, the engine water temperature,and the system voltage.

The settings page 305 associated with the engine may be a single page orthe settings options may be divided across several pages. The settingsoptions associated with the engine include production parameters, engineparameters, engine idle parameters, and startup and shutdown parameters.The production parameters may include the minimum exhaust temperaturespre- and post-catalytic converter during operation, along with a minimumoperating engine temperature and the desired operating RPM for theinternal combustion engine. The engine parameters may include a maximumdifference between the pre- and post-catalytic converter O₂ levels, theminimum oil pressure, the engine temperature at which the fan isactuated on, the minimum RPM for a standard shutdown procedure, theengine temperature warning level, and an O₂ control loop setpoint. Theidle parameters may include an idle mode threshold, an idle modeduration timer, and an idle mode RPM for the internal combustion engine.The startup and shutdown parameters may include an engine stop delaytimer, a set number of attempts for an automatic restart, a time delaybetween a shutdown and a restart, the LEL shutdown level, and a LELdelay timer to set the restart time delay after an LEL shutdown event.

An exemplary carburetor data page 297 is shown in FIG. 15. Thecarburetor data page 297 shows the current positions of the three intakevalves 437, 439, 441 as well as the current carburetor status. Thecarburetor data page 297 includes the following real-time sensor dataand color indicators showing whether the sensor data displayed is withina desired operating range: the status of the first fuel solenoid 391(off or on); the status of the second fuel solenoid 393 (off or on); thefuel flow rate 395; the external air manifold vacuum 397; the externalair flow rate 399; the volatile vapor flow rate 401 from the well; and ageneral status indicator for the well 443 showing if the well is in a“good” condition or if sensor data associated with the well is out ofrange. For certain of the sensor data displayed, it is also desirable toinclude a third color indicator to visually show when the sensor datahas passed a predetermined warning limit, this warning limit beingoutside of the desired operating range. The sensors for which it may bedesirable to have this third color indicator on the carburetor data page297 include the flow rate of the fuel, external air, and volatile vaporsand the external air manifold vacuum pressure.

The settings page 307 associated with the carburetor may be a singlepage or the settings options may be divided across several pages. Thesettings options associated with the carburetor include start variablesettings and maximum/minimum valve settings. In addition, the carburetorpage 297 may link the force idle page, discussed above, and acalibration page for the intake valves. The start variable settings pagemay include initial settings for the fuel intake valve and the airintake valve at startup of the internal combustion engine. These initialvalve settings may be expressed as a percentage open, with 0% beingfully closed and 100% being fully open. The maximum/minimum valvesettings page enables the operator to set the minimum and maximum valveopening parameters for each of the fuel intake valve, the external airintake valve, and the volatile vapor intake valve.

On the valve calibration page in FIG. 15, the operator may manuallyactuate any of the intake valves to a designated opening, againexpressed as a percentage open, and the programmable controller displaysboth the sensor data from the valve sensor associated with the manuallyactuated valve, as a percentage open, and the voltage applied to thevalve to achieve the manually entered parameter. The operator may thencompare the valve operation with known technical specifications for thevalve to determine if the valve is in need of cleaning or beingreplaced. In alternative embodiments, the same procedure may beperformed on other valves or solenoids incorporated into the system.

An exemplary well data page 279 is shown in FIG. 16. The well data page279 includes the following real-time sensor data and color indicatorsshowing whether the sensor data displayed is within a desired operatingrange: the volatile vapor flow rate 401 from the well; the well vacuum403; the KO tank purge valve status 405; the KO tank water drain valvestatus 407; the well intake sensor 445; the well purge sensor 447; andthe well water drain sensor 449. The well data page 279 also includesgraphical buttons 451, 453 as active regions for the operator to actuatethe KO tank purge valve and the tank water drain valve.

From the well data page 279, the operator may navigate to the wellvacuum settings page 285, the well valve settings page 287, thecatalytic converter temperature settings page 289, and to the force idlepage 291. On the well vacuum settings page 285, the minimum and maximumwell vacuum parameters may be set by the operator. On the well valvesettings page, the operator may adjust the gain/time for opening up thewell intake valve following startup of the internal combustion engine.On the catalytic converter temperature settings page 289, the operatormay set the pre- and post-catalytic converter exhaust temperaturewarning parameter and the well lean temperature parameter.

Although not depicted, the general settings page 293 is a page on whichthe operator may enter general settings and parameters for the system.These parameters may include the job number, the unit number, and theserial number for the internal combustion engine. The input/outputstatus page 301 shows the current condition of all the digital inputs,digital outputs, and analog inputs for the programmable controller,along with the real-time sensor data associated with each input. Theoverride page 303 enables the operator to override any of the digitalinputs, digital outputs, and analog inputs for the programmablecontroller. Manually overriding one of the inputs or outputs can behelpful for troubleshooting a bad wire, sensor, solenoid, and switch. Incertain embodiments, the override page 303 is only available to anoperator who is a tech level 2.

Artificial Engine Loading System

One goal of internal combustion engine based volatile vapor eliminationor remediation systems of the type disclosed herein is to maximize theconsumption of the vapors. Accordingly, it is desirable to burn amajority of volatile vapors in the engine from the supplementary vaporsource 111 when available rather than fuel from primary base fuel source107 (e.g. liquid or gaseous fuel) used to stabilize engine operation,and most desirable to burn solely volatile vapors in certain operationalcircumstances provided stable engine operation can be maintained withindesignated operating or production parameters. The amount or volume ofvolatile vapors that can be consumed by the engine, however, is limitedby and directly related to the load imposed on the engine at any giventime in addition to the available supply of volatile vapors. If theengine is required to perform more work, consumption of volatile vaporsis possible to more quickly remediate an environmental cleanup site orequipment which may contain volatile vapors (e.g. fuel storage tankfarms).

According to another aspect of the invention therefore, an artificialengine loading system is provided which operates to artificiallyincrease the load on the engine crankshaft, thereby making the engine domore work and increasing consumption of volatile vapors from the vaporsource. The term “artificial” is used to connote and distinguish betweena separate load imposed on the engine solely for the purpose ofincreasing volatile vapor burn in contrast to any normal engineoperating loads which might include loads imposed by operating auxiliaryor ancillary apparatuses off of the engine crankshaft whether they bemechanical devices (e.g. fans, pumps, etc.) and/or electrical devicessuch as electric generators for producing on-site or on-board power. Theengine loading system is usable with any of the system configurationsdisclosed herein for combusting volatile vapors and augments suchsystems to improve their capacity for burning and eliminating thevapors. In one implementation, the artificial load may be a braking loador force applied to the engine crankshaft by an engine braking device asfurther described herein.

Stable operation of the engine typically cannot usually be maintained onmerely the vapor source alone due to fluctuating levels of availablevolatile vapors from time to time during operation of the engine.Volatile vapor supply will frequently fluctuate up and down over timedepending on the nature of the volatile vapor source (e.g. vaporoushydrocarbons drawn via vacuum pump from soil or liquid fuel tanks,etc.). Referring to FIG. 1, 2 or 17, this situation requires apercentage of base fuel consumption (i.e. from fuel source 107) toinitially establish and then maintain normal engine baseline operationas the volatile vapor supply from vapor source 111 fluctuates. Whenimposing an artificial braking load on the engine 200 to increase fuelconsumption particularly volatile vapors which preferably comprises allor at least the majority of fuel consumed, it creates a more challengingoperating scenario to balance the percentages of base fuel, air, andvolatile vapor necessary to maintain stable engine operation.

Accordingly, in one embodiment, an artificial engine loading system 500which comprises a programmable auxiliary brake controller 520 isprovided in which the braking load is introduced or withdrawnprogressively in multiple stages or steps (i.e. “load levels” asreferred to herein). Every load level implemented preferably willrequire the engine to stabilize and stay within the pre-established setengine operating or production parameters. In one non-limitingconfiguration of the system 500, if all production parameters are met,max base fuel % (i.e. source 107) has not been hit, and a delay timerhas expired, the system will proceed to the next higher load level toincrease load on the engine and volatile vapor consumption. The systemwill keep increasing the load until the highest set level has beenreached or the max % base fuel is exceeded to maintain engineparameters. The load will increase and decrease as needed during theproduction process (i.e. combustion of available volatile vapors).Advantageously, the engine loading system 500 will ensure that theengine 200 will be burning the most volatile vapors as possible whilestill maintaining stable engine operation, as further described herein.

FIG. 17 is a schematic drawing depicting one non-limiting example of anartificial engine loading system 500 according to the presentdisclosure. The basic combustion engine 103, catalytic converter 123,and fuel, air, and vapor valves 113, 115, 117 may be the same as in thesystems shown in FIG. 1 or 2 and fully described above. Description willnot be repeated here for sake of brevity. Staged operation of the engineloading system 500 is a complex process which is automaticallycontrolled by a programmable processor-based controller.

With additional reference to FIG. 3, the engine loading system 500 maybe configured to operably cooperate with and/or be controlled by themain engine system programmable controller 151 in some embodiments withinterface and electronic system architecture modifications for theengine loading system. In certain implementations, control of the engineloading system 500 to apply or remove braking force on the enginecrankshaft 502 may be accomplished primarily via a separate dedicatedauxiliary brake controller 520. Brake controller 520 is communicably andoperably coupled to the main controller 151 for exchanging data andcontrol signals necessary for operating the engine loading system. Forexample, basic engine operating or “production parameters” collected viathe array of sensors described herein by the main controller 151 (e.g.fuel/vapor/air valve positions, O2 levels, oil pressure, engine RPM,etc.) may be used by the main controller to generate control signalstransmitted to the brake controller 520 via communication links 550(which may be hard-wired or wireless) to control operation of thebraking or loading system 500. The controllers 151 and 520 may thereforeoperate in unison and cooperatively to increase or decrease the brakingload on the engine 200 and concomitant combustion of volatile vapors inthe progressive staged or stepped manner describe above. In oneembodiment, two-way communications between the main and brakecontrollers may be implemented by a controller area network (CAN) oranother communication protocol. The foregoing aspects of the engineloading system 500 are further described below.

It bears noting that the main controller 520 makes it possible toretrofit an engine loading system 500 on existing installations of thevolatile vapor combustion system disclosed herein. For example, thebrake controller 520 may have a plurality of load level outputs whichare progressively turned on or off based on control signals generatedand transmitted by the main controller 151. For new installations, thefunctionality of the brake controller 520 may optionally be incorporateddirectly into the main controller 151 and the brake controller 520 maybe omitted. Any of these control configurations may be used in variousembodiments.

Referring initially now to FIG. 17, artificial engine loading system 500includes engine braking device 501 (also referred to herein as a “loadcell”) operably and mechanically coupled directly or indirectly toengine crankshaft 502 which is rotated by the internal combustion engine503 in a manner well known in the art. In one example configuration, around disk-shaped flywheel 503 may be mechanically coupled on a proximalend of the crankshaft 502 opposite to the fan 121 which may be coupledto the distal end of the crankshaft as illustrated.

The engine braking device 501 (shown schematically in FIG. 17) may be africtionless electromagnetic induction braking device such as forexample without limitation an axial retarder such as or similar to thoseavailable from Telma Retarder, Inc. of Bartlett, Ill., or others. Suchbraking devices generally comprise a fixed or stationary stator havingmagnets and coils which form an inductor and coaxially mounted rotorsthat are configured to rotate in unison with revolutions of thecrankshaft 502 via a mechanical coupling. The braking device 501 may besupported by any suitable type and configuration of a mounting base orframe 508 configured to accommodate the provided mounting interface ofthe device. Rubber mounts and fasteners may be used in some embodimentsto mount the device 501 to frame 508 for reducing mechanical vibrations.In other possible embodiments, other types of devices may be used toapply a braking load or force to the engine crankshaft such asmechanical or hydraulic friction braking devices.

The mechanical coupling between the engine braking device 501 andflywheel 503 affixed to the engine crankshaft may be formed in onenon-limiting embodiment by an assembly comprising a mechanical brakeshaft coupler 505 and a rubber torsional vibration damper 504 (FIGS.17-20). Coupler 505 includes an elongated cylindrical operating shaft507 having a proximal end 518 and distal end 517. A diametricallyenlarged circular disk-shaped mounting plate 506 is disposed on theproximal end 518 of the operating shaft 507 nearest the brake. Theopposite distal end 517 of the shaft 507 may have a male splinedconfiguration comprising a plurality of radially protruding longitudinalsplines 510 configured to engage a mating female splined central hub 512of the damper 504 comprising a complementary configured central splinedopening 511. The mating splines create a rotationally keyed interlockedmounting interface between the coupler 505 and damper 504.

The rubber vibration damper 504 is interposed between the circularflywheel 503 and the brake shaft coupler 505 to absorb vibrationstransmitted between the braking device 501 and engine crankshaft 502when a braking force is applied by the braking device. Damper 504 maygenerally comprise an assembly of a metal body including a circular flatbase plate 516 and raised cylindrical central hub 512 protruding axiallytherefrom. Hub 512 is a flat circular plate of greater thickness thanthe base plate in certain embodiments. Base plate 516 mounts thevibration damper 504 to the flywheel 503 via a plurality of threadedfasteners 519 arranged in a circular pattern. Hub 512 includes aplurality of rubber dampened mounting bolt assemblies each comprising arubber bushing 514 and retainer bolt 515 extending therethrough andengaging threaded holes 513 formed in the base plate 516. The mountingbolt assemblies may be arranged in a circular pattern on the hub.Bushings 514 and bolts 515 detachably mount the hub 512 to the baseplate 516 in a vibrationally-dampened manner to minimize transmittingvibrations between the engine braking device 501 and engine crankshaft502. The splined proximal end 517 of the brake shaft coupler 505 istherefore vibrationally isolated from the engine flywheel 503. A smallclearance gap may be provided between the base plate 516 of damper 504and flywheel 503 as seen in FIG. 20 to avoid direct contact therebetweenand transmission of vibrations across the interface.

Referring to FIG. 18, the mounting plate 506 of the brake shaft coupler505 may be detachably coupled to the engine braking device 501 via aplurality of axially-oriented threaded mounting bosses or studs 521formed on the side of the braking device 501 facing the enginecrankshaft. Threaded studs 521 are received through mating holes 509 inthe mounting plate 506. The mounting plate 506 may be secured to thestuds via threaded nuts (not shown). Other types of mountingconfigurations and methods however are possible and may alternatively beused. When the brake shaft coupler 505 is assembled between the brakingdevice 501 and engine crankshaft 502, rotation of the crankshaft in turnrotates the coupler and the rotors of the braking device via themounting interface.

Alternative possible ways to couple between the electromagnetic brakingdevice 501 and engine crankshaft 502 include without limitation auniversal joint driveshaft, flex plate with spring loaded vibrationdamping, slip yoke type driveshaft, Lovejoy type power transmissioncoupler, or direct drive (e.g. mounting device 501 directly to engineflywheel). The invention is not limited by the type of connection usedto couple the brake to the crankshaft.

In one non-limiting embodiment, operation of the engine loading system500 to apply a braking force on the engine may be controlled viaseparately dedicated auxiliary brake controller 520, as noted above.Brake controller 520 may include a processor and other auxiliaryelectronic components of the types described above with respect to maincontroller 151 shown in FIG. 3 necessary to form a fully functionalcontroller, as would be readily known to those skilled in the artwithout further undue elaboration (e.g. volatile and non-volatilememory, communication module and/or interface connections, input/outputdevices, etc.). Brake controller 520 is operably and communicablycoupled to main controller 151 via wired or wireless communication links550 to facilitate operation of the engine loading system 500 using thedisplay interfaces and system sensor operating data alreadycollected/monitored by controller 151, as already described herein. Insome embodiment, auxiliary brake controller 520 may be physicallymounted near or to the same housing as the main controller andrepresents an auxiliary unit. In some embodiments, the functionality ofthe auxiliary brake controller 520 may instead be integrated into themain controller 151 instead of as a separate “add on” controller unit.The present invention is not limited to either configuration scenario solong as stepped operation of the braking device 501 is achieved.

As noted above, one goal of the engine loading system 500 is to maximizecombustion/consumption of supplementing vaporous fuel from the volatilevapor side of the carburetor, and preferably when possible to burn onlyvolatile vapors while maintaining stable engine operation without anyreliance on the primary base fuel (e.g. propane or other) from source107 if the volatile vapor supply is sufficient. To accomplish this goal,the system is configured via the programmable brake controller 520 tobring the applied braking load on or withdraw it from the enginecrankshaft progressively in a plurality of staged steps based on engineproduction parameters measured by the sensors and collected by the maincontroller 151 in real time. The brake controller 520 is operable toincrease and decrease the applied braking load automatically as neededduring the production process based on the quantity of volatile vaporsavailable for consumption at any given time, maintenance of stableengine operation, and percentage of base fuel (e.g. propane) consumptionfrom source 107 as further described herein. In this manner, the enginewill be burning the maximum amount of volatile vapors as possible duringits operation, which is optimal. Advantageously, the artificial engineloading system 500 will reduce the time necessary to eliminate thevolatile vapors at a given remediation installation site. In onenon-limiting embodiment described herein, four operational engine loadlevels may be used as a representative example, recognizing that feweror more load levels may be used following the same methodology andprocess.

FIGS. 20 and 21 summarize the main steps in one example method orprocess 600 for controlling operation of the engine 200 in a staged orstepped manner via the engine loading system 500 to maximize combustionof volatile vapors while maintaining stable engine operation. Thefollowing engine loading system process steps and control logic routinemay be executed and automatically implemented by the main controller151, auxiliary brake controller 520, or in combination via executingvarious program instructions pre-programmed into the controller(s). In apreferred embodiment, the main controller 151 controls the process andthe main controller 520 may be relegated to the function ofincreasing/decreasing the load levels applied or removed from the enginecrankshaft by engine braking device 501 in the manner describe above viacommand/control signals transmitted to the brake controller by the maincontroller. For ease of description, it will be assumed for this exampleproduction process that the brake controller 520 is programmed toautomatically execute the following steps and process associated withthe progressively applied or withdrawn braking load operating scenarios.Operation and control of other primary engine and carburetor functions(e.g. changing fuel, air, or vapor source valve positions, etc.) may beperformed in the manner already described herein by the main controller151 Primary valve, engine, and/or carburetor performance or productiondata may be obtained by the main programmable controller 151 which isused to control the auxiliary brake controller 520 for use in the stagedengine load application process.

To start the production process 600 for combusting and eliminatingvolatile vapors, the engine 200 is initially started with the base fueland air intake valves 113, 115 open in step 602 (Idle Mode). Notably,the volatile vapor intake valve 117 is shut off at this point during theengine warmup process until normal engine operating temperatures andconditions are reached to establish stable engine operation using onlythe base fuel from source 107. The base fuel may be propane in oneembodiment; however, other gaseous or liquid fuels (e.g. diesel,gasoline, etc.) may be used in certain implementations. A test isperformed by main controller 151 in Step 604 to determine whether allbaseline or setpoint production parameters including a target O2(oxygen) air/fuel ratio have been met by the engine system operation.These baseline parameters and target O2 may be preprogrammed into maincontroller 151 prior to the production run.

The target O2, one of the baseline operating or production parameters,represents the air/fuel mixture ratio which is derived from the O2sensors 223, 225 communicably and operatively coupled to the maincontroller 151 (see, e.g. FIG. 14, engine page 295). The O2 sensorscollect and send real-time air/fuel mixture feedback (e.g. 12.5 A/F,etc.) to the controller. Through the touchscreen display 159 or otherdata input device, the user can set a target O2 value (A/F ratio) andthe O2 sensors gives real time feedback. The main controller 151 thenautomatically adjusts the various engine operating values to achieve thetarget.

In one non-limiting example, the baseline operating or productionparameters preprogrammed into main controller 151 which are verified bythe controller by comparison to real-time operating data may includewithout limitation:—Pre/Post catalytic converter engine exhausttemperatures in range;—Target O2 is met and maintained within X % oftarget;—O2% difference in range;—Water temperature in range;—Oil PSIabove minimum set point;—LEL (lower explosive limit) below maximum setpoint;—No maximum % base fuel (flow-based) or % air (flow-based) havebeen hit;—Max KO tank vacuum has not been exceeded;—No external operatoror machine safety's have been tripped; and—Regular maintenance timer hasnot been exceeded. Fewer, more, and/or different baseline productionparameters may be used so long as these parameters are preferablyindicative of stable engine operation or other relevant considerationsassociated with operating the engine system.

Returning to Step 604, if the production parameters and target O2conversely have not been met, engine operation continues until theseconditions are satisfied. Once stable engine operating status is reached(a “Yes” response to test in Step 604), control passes to Step 606. InStep 606, the volatile vapor intake valve 117 (“well valve” in FIGS.21-22) begins to open gradually to now allow the vapors to be drawn fromsource 111 and mixed with intake air (from source 109) and base fuel(from source 107) in the carburetor 105 such as via the vacuum producedby the engine. A volatile vapor intake valve 117 maximum % open (from0-100%) and associated time period (e.g. minutes) over which the maximum% open is to be gradually attained is preprogrammed into main controller151 at the start of the production process. For example, the userprogram the volatile vapor intake valve 117 to open a maximum of 80%gradually over a period of 60 minutes by repeating the tests in Steps608, 610, and 612 are achieved.

Steps 606 to 612 define a control loop for controlling the gradualopening of the volatile vapor intake valve 117. Once valve 117 begins toopen in Step 606, a test is performed in Step 608 to determine whetherthe production parameters and target O2 are being met with introducingvolatile vapors via the volatile vapor intake valve 117 being X %initially open. If not, control passes to Step 609 which closes thevolatile vapor intake valve 117 and passes control back to step 604until production parameters and target O2 are met. On the other hand ifthe response in test Step 608 is “Yes,” the test in Step 610 isperformed to determine whether the air intake valve 115 and base fuelintake valve 113 maximum % open limits have been met for each valve. Themaximum % open positions for each of these two valves are preprogrammedinto main controller 151 at the start of the production process (e.g.0-100 percent open).

Notably, Step 610 indirectly determines whether there is a sufficientsupply of volatile vapors from source 111 to at least partially sustainengine operation given that the quantity of volatile vapors availablemay vary over time of day based on changing ambient conditions in somecases, as already explained herein. If in Step 610 a “Yes” response isreturned by main controller 151, this indicates that productionparameters and O2 target are only being met due to combusting a maximumamount of base fuel despite some contribution from the volatile vaporsource (depending on the % open of the well valve). Control passes toStep 611 which stops opening the volatile vapor intake valve 117 anyfurther until the process control finds that the base fuel or O2 intakevalve 113, 115 has come off its maximum % of open preprogrammed limit(i.e. passing control back to repeat Steps 604, 606, 608, and 610).

Alternatively in Step 610, if the base fuel and O2 intake valves 113have not reached their maximum % open, control passes forward to step612 which determines whether the well valve (volatile vapor intake valve117) has hit its maximum % open preprogrammed into main controller 151as noted above. If not, control passes back to Step 606 which opens thewell valve a little more and Steps 608, 610, and are repeated. Thiscontrol loop continues and the well valve gradually opens more each timeprovided the conditions in Steps 608, 610, and 612 continue to be met.

Once the volatile vapor intake valve 117 has hit its maximum % openposition in the test of Step 612, the system is now in condition toactivate and take advantage of the engine loading system 500. Inessence, this means that engine production parameters and O2 targets canbe met by burning volatile vapors without maximizing base fuelconsumption. Process control passes to Step 614 in which the maincontroller 151 checks whether the engine loading system 500 has beenpowered on and activated for use. If not, the user does not presentlyintend to increase engine load and consumption of volatile vapors at thepresent time. The engine loading system 500 will not be active and thevolatile vapor combustion system will operate in the original manneralready described herein. If the system is enabled in Step 614, controlpasses to Step 616 to implement the imposition of an artificial load onengine 103 via engine braking device 501 (also referred to as “load cell501” herein for brevity).

In Step 616, the minimum load level representing the minimum brakingforce to be applied to the engine 200 by braking device 501 isprogrammed and set in brake controller 520 by the user. This minimumload represents Load Level 1. The load level may be represented inengineering units by ft.-lbs. (foot-pounds) or Nm (Newton-meters) oftorque applied to the engine crankshaft 502. The minimum load level isprogrammed via the Load Cell screen or page 530 on visual display 159(see, e.g. FIG. 3) which may be accessed from the maintenance screen orpage 261 in FIG. 5. Display 159 may be a touch sensitive display orscreen for as further described herein. FIG. 23 depicts one non-limitingexample of a Load Cell page 530 which may be used. The user selects theLoad Cell button on page 261 and then the Load Level 1 button on page530 when it appears to enter the desired minimum load level (foot-lbs.).The “buttons” may be soft buttons such as active icon on the touchscreen display 530 and/or a hard button adjacent the icon on the screen.The engine load to be applied for each successively higher load levelstep may be preselected and preprogrammed into brake controller 520 in asimilar manner by selecting the Level 2, Level 3, and Level 4 buttons.This provides the capability of setting non-uniform incrementalincreases of loads from one Load Level to the next if desired.Alternatively, the program instructions or software may be configured toautomatically increase the engine load by an amount equal to the minimumload level entered without the user having to input a specific loadlevel for each of Level 2, 3, and 4. Either scenario may be used. In onerepresentative non-limiting example, Load Level 1 may be about 110ft.-lbs. and the incremental increase from each load level to the nextmay also be 110 ft.-lbs. Larger or smaller incremental increases may beused. The incremental change in load between each load level need not beequal to the minimum load level and/or may be different betweendifferent load levels.

In Step 618, a delay time or “dwell time” is programmed into maincontroller 151 by the user via selecting the Delay Time input field onLoad Cell screen 530. The main controller 151 implements a time to beactivated when appropriate based on the entered dwell time (e.g.minutes). The dwell time represents a period or interval of time (e.g.minutes or hours) which must lapse or pass that corresponds to theminimum amount of time considered necessary to accurately signify thatengine operation is stable (i.e. the engine production parameters orother conditions are met) before the next successively higher load isimposed on the engine by the braking device 501.

In Step 620, the maximum “base fuel” percentage is set and programmedinto brake controller 520 by the user via selecting the Maximum % BaseFuel input field on the Load Cell screen or page 530. The base fuelpercentage is measured by the main controller 151 via valve sensor 171operable to detect the “degree of open” position or percentage of themain fuel intake valve 113 as described herein. The maximum base fuelpercentage limit set by the user represents the maximum desiredpercentage of base fuel (i.e. a base fuel crossover point) that the userconsiders should not be exceeded when running at an artificially imposedload level while consuming volatile vapors. If this value is exceeded,then it is assumed that the engine 200 must primarily rely on and burnbase fuel from source 107 in order to sustain stable engine operation atthe present load level. In principle, it bears noting that the base fuelpercentage is indirectly indicative of the quantity of volatile vaporsavailable at any given time during operation of the engine 200. Forexample, if engine 200 is running on volatile vapors and 50% base fuelfor a period of time at Load Level 1, and during the next system checkby controller 520 the base fuel percentage is found to have increased,this signifies that the quantity of volatile vapors available hasdropped because the engine now requires more base fuel to maintainstable operation at Load Level 1. When the preprogrammed base fuel %limit is reached, it therefore now becomes desirable for brakecontroller 520 to reduce the load level or deactivate off the brakingdevice completely to conserve base fuel until the volatile vapor supplyincreases.

In some operating scenarios, it should be noted that the minimum loadlevel and other levels, minimum dwell time, and maximum % of base fuelmay have already been previously preprogrammed into main controller 151by the user. In such a case, the main controller will simply verify thepresence of these preprogrammed values in the system during Steps 616,618, and 620.

Returning to FIGS. 21 and 22, the process continues in Step 622 in whichthe main controller 151 determines whether all pre-selected engineproduction parameters and target O2 are presently being met by operationof the engine to signify a stable condition before activating thebraking load. If not, control passes to Step 624 and back to Step 608 torepeat the process until an affirmative response is returned in step622. If all production parameters and target O2 is met, control passesto Step 626 which implements a test to determine whether the max % ofbase fuel previously input on the Load Cell page 530 has been reached.If it has, control then passes back to Step 622. This indicates toogreat a reliance on and consumption of base fuel is needed to sustainstable engine operation meaning volatile vapor supply is presentlyinadequate to activate the load cell.

At this point in the process, it should be noted that the engine brakingdevice 501 (load cell) is enabled (energized and powered on) andready-to-operate, but is not activated yet to apply a braking force tothe engine crankshaft 502 yet. The engine 200 is also currently stilloperating on both base fuel 107 and volatile vapors 111.

In Step 626, if the controller 151 determines that the maximum base fuel% burn has not been reached, control passes to Step 628 to determine ifthe well valve 117 is opened within X % of its preprogrammed maximumlimit reflected in Step 612 and discussed above. In one non-limitingexample, an X value of 5% may be used. If a negative response isreturned in Step 626, the engine braking device 501 will not beactivated in Step 616. Control passes back to Step 622 to continuemonitoring engine performance, base fuel consumption, and well valve 117position.

It bears noting that the well intake valve 117 is a slow acting andopening valve in one embodiment. By contrast, the air and base fuelintake valves 113, 115 respond quickly to keep target O2 and RPM incheck under control of the programmable controller 151. Although theprogrammable controller 151 initially checks to confirm that theposition of well intake valve 117 has reach the preprogrammed % open inStep 612, the controller thereafter can automatically change position ofthe well valve during a production run for example if the controllerdiscovers that the volatile vapors become lean and the air valve is atits min % open. In certain operating situations, for example, the basefuel may not have reached the max % yet in Step 626 but the controllermay detect that the well intake valve 117 has started to close and is nolonger within X % of its maximum limit in Step 628, thereby signaling adrop in available volatile vapor supply. Accordingly, the system isconfigured in the embodiment described herein to require the checks ofboth Steps 626 and 628 before implementing the initial engine brakingforce or changing levels of braking force; either of which wouldrepresent a fluctuation and drop in available volatile vapors to anunacceptable level.

If in Step 628 the main controller 151 determines that the well valve117 is opened within X % of its maximum limit (i.e. degree open), theload cell (i.e. engine braking device 501) will be activated and engagedto turn on Load Level 1 which will apply a first braking force or loadon the engine crankshaft 502 in Step 630. Control passes to Step 634 todetermine whether the load cell has reached the maximum set(preprogrammed) load level yet (e.g. Load Level 4). If affirmative, theload cell will remain energized and operate at the maximum appliedbraking force load level. Control passes back to Step 614 to continuemonitoring the engine production process as described above.

If in Step 634 the load cell has not reached the maximum set(preprogrammed) level yet (e.g. operating at Load Levels 1, 2, or 3 inthis example), control passes back to Step 622 to repeat the foregoingsteps 622, 626, 628, 630, and 634, thereby implementing a control loop632 for gradually and successively implementing the next highest loadlevel. Each load level is different than every other load level. In Step622, the next time main processor 151 again determines that the engineproduction parameters and target O2 are presently being met by operationof the engine at the present initial load level (e.g. Load Level 1) forexample for the duration of the preprogrammed dwell time, Step 630 willturn on the next sequentially higher load level (e.g. Load Level 2)through the cycle, and so forth until the maximum load level (Load Level4 in this example) is reached.

During cycling of the engine loading system control loop 632, if anegative result occurs in the test of Step 622 when already operating atLoad Levels 2-4, the load will not advance to the next level and insteadreturn to the prior lower level until production parameters and targetO2 are met for the dwell time. The process flow will continuallydecrease the load level in a stepped manner if these productionparameters and target O2 are not met for each dwell time period. If onthe other hand the engine loading system 500 is operating at Load Level1 in Step 622 and conditions are not met, the engine braking device 501will be deactivated and control returns to Step 608. When the vaporsstart to go lean, the programmable controller may be configured so thatthe load level will drop when the base fuel valve hit its max % or thewell valve goes lower than its max %.

Numerous variations of the foregoing process are possible.

While the invention has been described with respect to specific examplesincluding presently preferred modes of carrying out the invention, thoseskilled in the art will appreciate that there are numerous variationsand permutations of the above described systems and techniques. It is tobe understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural andfunctional modifications may be made without departing from the scope ofthe present invention. Thus, the spirit and scope of the inventionshould be construed broadly as set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A remediation system for combusting volatilevapors, the system comprising: an internal combustion engine comprisinga rotatable crankshaft; a carburetor operably coupled to the engine, thecarburetor having a first intake valve receiving base fuel from aprimary fuel source, a second intake valve receiving external air froman external air source, and a third intake valve receiving volatilevapors from a vapor source, the carburetor configured to combine thebase fuel, external air, and volatile vapors fuel to form a combustionmixture and discharge the mixture to the engine; an electromagneticbraking device operably coupled to the crankshaft of the engine, thebraking device changeable in state between an activated state and adeactivated state, the braking device configured to apply an adjustablebraking load on the engine crankshaft when in the activated state forincreasing combustion of volatile vapors from the vapor source; and aprogrammable controller operably coupled to the braking device, thecontroller configured to: receive real-time engine operating datameasured during operation of the engine by a plurality of sensorscommunicably coupled to the controller; compare the real-time engineoperating data against baseline engine operating parameterspre-programmed into the controller; and automatically activate thebraking device to apply the braking load to the engine based on thereal-time engine operating data meeting the baseline engine operatingparameters.
 2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the programmablecontroller does not apply the braking load on the engine with thebraking device when the baseline engine operating parameters are not metby the real-time engine operating data.
 3. The system according to claim1, wherein after the braking device has been activated, the controlleris further configured to deactivate the braking device when thecontroller determines that the baseline engine operating parameters arenot met by the real-time engine operating data.
 4. The system accordingto claim 1, wherein the programmable controller is configured to apply apreprogrammed constant first load level with the braking device for adwell time period pre-programmed into the controller when the baselineengine operating parameters are met by the real-time engine operatingdata.
 5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the programmablecontroller is further configured to apply a higher preprogrammedconstant second braking load level on the engine with the braking devicewhen the baseline engine operating parameters are met by the real-timeengine operating data at an expiration of the dwell time period whileoperating the engine at the first braking load level.
 6. The systemaccording to claim 5, wherein the programmable controller is furtherconfigured to decrease the second load level back to the first loadlevel when the baseline engine operating parameters are not met by thereal-time engine operating data while operating the engine at the secondload level.
 7. The system according to claim 1, wherein each of thefirst, second, and third intake valves each have an associated valveposition sensor operable to sense a respective position of each valveindicative of a respective flow percent; and wherein the baseline engineoperating parameters for the comparison to real-time engine operatingdata necessary to activate the braking device includes first intakevalve flow percent, second intake valve flow percent, and third intakevalve flow percent.
 8. The system according to claim 1, wherein thebaseline engine operating parameters for the comparison to real-timeengine operating data includes a preprogrammed target oxygen level inexhaust gas from the engine.
 9. The system according to claim 1, whereinthe braking device is an electromagnetic induction braking device. 10.The system according to claim 1, wherein the programmable controllerincludes a plurality of braking load levels and a dwell time periodpre-programmed into the programmable controller, the programmablecontroller configured to automatically change braking load levels whenthe braking device is in the activated state.
 11. The system accordingto claim 10, wherein each braking load level represents a differentpredetermined constant braking force applied by the braking device tothe engine crankshaft for the duration of the preprogrammed dwell timeperiod, each braking load level being different in magnitude from anyother braking load level.
 12. The system according to claim 1, furthercomprising an interactive electronic touchscreen display operablycoupled to the programmable controller and configured to provide a userinterface, the display operable to pre-program the baseline engineoperating parameters into the programmable controller.
 13. A remediationsystem for combusting volatile vapors, the system comprising: aninternal combustion engine comprising a rotatable crankshaft; acarburetor operably coupled to the engine, the carburetor having a firstintake valve receiving base fuel from a primary fuel source, a secondintake valve receiving air from an air source, and a third intake valvereceiving volatile vapors from a vapor source, the carburetor configuredto combine the base fuel, air, and volatile vapors to form a combustionmixture and discharge the mixture to the engine; each of the first,second, and third intake valves having an associated valve positionsensor operable to sense a respective position of each valve indicativeof a respective flow percent; an electromagnetic braking device operablycoupled to the crankshaft of the engine, the braking device changeablein state between a deactivated state and an activated state wherein thebraking device is configured to apply an adjustable braking load on theengine crankshaft for increasing combustion of volatile vapors from thevapor source; a programmable controller operably coupled to the brakingdevice and the valve position sensors, the programmable controllerconfigured to automatically change the state of the braking device basedon a sensed real-time position of at least the first intake valve. 14.The system according to claim 13, wherein the programmable controller isconfigured to compare the sensed real-time position of the first intakevalve against a preprogrammed maximum percent open limit of the firstintake valve, and wherein the programmable controller will not activatethe braking device when the maximum percent open limit has been met orexceeded.
 15. The system according to claim 14, wherein the programmablecontroller is further configured to compare a sensed real-time positionof the third intake valve against a preprogrammed maximum percent openlimit of the third intake valve, and wherein the programmable controllerwill not activate the braking device unless the maximum percent openlimit of the third intake valve has been met or exceeded.
 16. The systemaccording to claim 13, wherein: the programmable controller isconfigured to automatically control the operation and position of thethird intake valve, the third intake valve movable between a closedposition and a maximum percent open position preprogrammed into theprogrammable controller; and wherein the programmable controller isprogrammed to gradually open the third intake valve from the closedposition to the maximum percent open position over a period of timepreprogrammed into the programmable controller to provide stable engineoperation.
 17. The system according to claim 13, wherein theprogrammable controller is pre-programmed with a plurality of differentconstant engine braking load levels each of different magnitude, and theprogrammable controller is further configured to increase or decreasethe engine braking load level based on a sensed position of the thirdintake valve and the sensed position of the first intake valve.
 18. Thesystem according to claim 17, wherein the programmable controller isfurther configured to: (i) compare an actual base fuel consumptionmeasured by the position sensor of the first intake valve against apredetermined maximum base fuel consumption setpoint pre-programmed intothe programmable controller; and (ii) switch the load levels to the nextsuccessively higher or lower load level based on the comparison of theactual base fuel consumption against the base fuel consumption setpoint.19. A remediation system for combusting volatile vapors, the systemcomprising: an internal combustion engine comprising a rotatablecrankshaft; a carburetor operably coupled to the engine, the carburetorbase fuel receiving from a primary fuel source, air from an air source,and volatile vapors from a vapor source, the carburetor configured tocombine the base fuel, air, and volatile vapors to form a combustionmixture and discharge the mixture to the engine; an electromagneticbraking device operably coupled to the crankshaft of the engine, thebraking device changeable in state between an activated state and adeactivated state, the braking device configured to apply an adjustablebraking load on the engine crankshaft when in the activated state forincreasing combustion of volatile vapors from the vapor source.
 20. Thesystem according to claim 19, further comprising a flywheel fixedlycoupled to an end of the crankshaft and rotatable therewith, the brakingdevice operably coupled to the flywheel.
 21. The system according toclaim 19, further comprising a programmable controller operably coupledto the braking device for controlling operation thereof, theprogrammable controller configured to: (1) change state of the brakingdevice, and (2) increase or decrease the applied braking load on theengine crankshaft.
 22. The system according to claim 21, furthercomprising: an oxygen sensor configured to sense a real-time oxygenlevel of exhaust from the engine indicative of an air/fuel ratio of thecombustion mixture; the programmable controller being configured toautomatically activate or deactivate the braking device based oncomparing the sensed oxygen level of the engine exhaust to a targetoxygen level preprogrammed into the programmable controller.
 23. Thesystem according to claim 19, further comprising a vibration damperoperably coupled to the flywheel, and a mechanical brake shaft having afirst end fixedly connected to the vibration damper and a second endfixedly connected to the braking device.
 24. The system according toclaim 23, wherein the brake shaft is fixedly connected to the vibrationdamper via a keyed spline interface.